Panasonic FH8 vs Sony A55

Below is a extensive assessment of the Panasonic FH8 and Sony A55, former being a Small Sensor Compact while the other is a Entry-Level DSLR by brands Panasonic and Sony. The resolution of the FH8 (16MP) and the A55 (16MP) is fairly similar but the FH8 (1/2.3") and A55 (APS-C) have different sensor dimensions.

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The FH8 was released 17 months later than the A55 making them a generation apart from one another. Both the cameras feature different body design with the Panasonic FH8 being a Compact camera and the Sony A55 being a Compact SLR camera.

Before delving straight to a thorough comparison, here is a quick summary of how the FH8 scores vs the A55 in terms of portability, imaging, features and an overall grade.

Below is a sample of the gallery pictures for Panasonic Lumix DMC-FH8 & Sony SLT-A55. The complete galleries are viewable at Panasonic FH8 Gallery & Sony A55 Gallery.

For those who are going to lug around your camera, you'll need to take into account its weight and measurements. The Panasonic FH8 has got external dimensions of 96mm x 57mm x 19mm (3.8" x 2.2" x 0.7") having a weight of 123 grams (0.27 lbs) while the Sony A55 has proportions of 124mm x 92mm x 85mm (4.9" x 3.6" x 3.3") with a weight of 500 grams (1.10 lbs).

Check the Panasonic FH8 and Sony A55 in our newest Camera & Lens Size Comparison Tool.

Always remember, the weight of an ILC will change dependant on the lens you are working with during that time. Here is a front view overall size comparison of the FH8 versus the A55.

Factoring in dimensions and weight, the portability rating of the FH8 and A55 is 96 and 67 respectively.

More often than not, it's hard to visualize the difference between sensor measurements only by reviewing a spec sheet. The visual here may provide you a much better sense of the sensor sizes in the FH8 and A55.

As you can see, the two cameras come with the identical megapixel count but different sensor measurements. The FH8 features the tinier sensor which should make getting shallow depth of field trickier. The more modern FH8 should have an advantage when it comes to sensor innovation.